Fate of a Kiss
by Ree-B
Summary: Serena and Darien are brought together and ripped apart by fate over and over. As time passes, each parting kiss becomes more bittersweet. Can they have a love without a farwell kiss?
1. Part I

The fate of a kiss (Updated 21-Oct-04 22:46:32)  
By: Ree-b Rating: PG  
  
Part I the young tyke scene: hold my hand  
  
Disclaimer: great thanx to the genius who thought up SM, Naoko Takeuchi  
  
Author's POV  
  
It was Darien's first day of school. He had never been to school before like the other children had. But he was not like the other children. Darien had no family. He lived at the Juuban Orphanage. He was in the first grade. He walked into a room full of children his age. They all stared; excited that something out of the ordinary was happening. The tall woman at the front of the room beckoned him to come close. She knelt down to him.  
  
"You must be my new student. I'm Ms. Helen." He greeted her courteously with a bow. "Class, this is Darien Chiba. Say hello."  
  
"Hello Darien." The class rang with the children's voices.  
  
"Hello." His voice seemed small and suppressed under their watchful eyes. His teacher spoke again.  
  
"Darien, you can sit at that seat at the back." He walked to his appointed seat. He sat at the back of the row, surrounded by five girls: two blondes, a brunette, a girl with raven hair, and one with blue hair. One of the blondes caught his eye. She had her hair pulled back into two buns. Her eyes were the prettiest sky blue. She smiled at him as he sat down. The teacher resumed her lesson. Class was very boring. Ms. Helen was teaching the class how to add. Darien already knew how to add. He actually knew a lot harder things. He had started to teach himself many things from the books in the Juuban Orphanage Library. His mind started to wander. He thought of the new book sitting in his briefcase that would be much more interesting than the addition lecture. Just as his young mind started trailing down the many possible paths a book might take, Darien heard his name being called. He looked up to see that Ms. Helen had called on him to answer the questions on the board. He could tell by the looking her eyes and her crossed arms that she had caught him daydreaming and he wouldn't know the answer. Darien stood from his desk and walked to the chalkboard. He grabbed the white chalk from his teacher's outstretched hand. He proceeded to write the answers to each question. Shocked, Ms. Helen told him he was correct and could take his seat. Darien walked back to his seat with a smirk on his face.  
The bell rang, signaling the start of recess. Darien leisurely grabbed a book from his briefcase and headed to a secluded swing set. After a few minutes he was so engrossed in his book that he didn't notice the boy that came up to him. The boy had dirty blonde hair and a cheerful smile. He was older, about fourth or fifth grade. He cleared his throat.  
"Ahem. You are the new boy in Ms. Helen's class, right? I'm Andrew. Ms. Helen wanted me to talk to you about how you like this school. So, what do you think?"  
"It is okay, I guess." He glanced around the playground. It was exactly how all the books he read had described it. A young girl caught his eyes. He recognized her as the blonde from his class. At that same moment the blonde turned to him and smiled. "I don't really have anything to compare it to. This is the first school I've ever been to." Andrew looked confused.  
"But Ms. Helen said that you were ahead of the class, that you already knew addition. How can you know all of this without going to school?" Darien lifted his book back to his face.  
"I read it in a book. I read a lot of things in books." Darien lifted his eyes back to the blonde girl. This time she gave him a small wave. Darien blushed and waved back. Andrew noticed and gave a small smile.  
"Do you know her, Darien?"  
"She sits by me in class. She is very nice." Darien somehow felt he could open up to this older boy.  
"I know her, too. She is like a little sister to me. She always comes into my dad's arcade with her mom. She always gets the same thing, a triple chocolate sundae with whipped cream and extra sprinkles. She is nice to pretty much everyone. But she only has four good friends."  
"Are they the other girls that sit near her in class?"  
"Yes. How did you know?"  
"It just seemed that they were good friends." As if the girl could tell they were talking about her, she started to head over to the two boys.  
"Hey Andrew! Hi Darien! My name is Serena. How are you liking our school?" Darien was amazed that she had remembered his name.  
"It is fine."  
"Well, my friends are waiting for me. I'll see you in class."  
Andrew chatted with Darien as he thought about how mature and smart the boy seemed. He even knew about some of the topics they were learning in his own fourth grade class.  
  
When the bell rang again indicating recess was over the boys said their farewells and went their separate ways.  
When Darien got back to his classroom, Ms. Helen asked Darien to come to her Desk. She said he was a very smart boy and since he was just starting at the school, he needed to take a special test to see how much he knew. He thought this was odd, but he took the long test back to his seat. As the students around him were reading from various picture books, Darien breezed through the science, math, and writing questions. Just as many of the children were finishing their books, Darien returned the test to Ms. Helen's desk. She picked it up with a smile, glancing over the answers.  
"Wait, Darien. You didn't answer this one. Would you like to give it a try?"  
"No thank you. I didn't know the answer to that one."  
"You can make a guess. You have a chance that you will get it right."  
"But I would still know that I did not know the answer." He turned on his heel and walked back to his seat. Astounded by the honesty of the boy, Ms. Helen walked to the front of the room and started a new lesson. Darien wasn't really pay any attention to her talk about grammar.  
Just as he had started to drown her out, there was a tap on his shoulder. The brunette behind him passed a note to him. Inside was the loopy writing of the blonde he had talked to at recess. This is what was written:  
  
Hi Darien,  
You were really nice at the swings. Will you be friends with me? All of my friends call me Bunny. Please write back.  
Serena(Bunny)  
  
He immediately scribbled a note back.  
  
Hello Serena,  
You seem nice too. I would enjoy being your friend.  
Darien  
  
He passed it back to her. She smiled sweetly.  
  
The next day, Ms. Helen held Darien after school. She said that he was going to get to talk to the principal today. He was led into an office with a large wooden desk. It was semi-colourful, accents of bright apple red. In front of the desk were four chairs. Two were occupied already by a man he recognized as the guardian at the orphanage and by a woman he was told was the guidance counselor. Ms. Helen sat as well and motioned for him to do the same. Shortly, a portly man with gray hair and a beard came in and sat down behind the desk.  
  
"Darien, we have a special chance for you." He smiled. Smiled as if he had found a glimmering light where there was no flame. He was told that he was a special boy and they wanted him to be in a higher grade. He would finish out the year in first grade. He would be given the course material for the grade he would miss so that he might catch up.  
Then when the new school year started, He would skip three years and be in 5th grade instead of 2nd. The adults all seemed quite concerned by how this might affect him. But he was un-fazed. He told them all he would be very happy to be in a classroom where he could challenge himself. So it was decided he would skip three grades at the end of the year. So he studied excitedly for the remainder of the year. But as time went by, he became good friends with Bunny. They would sit and talk at recess. He felt he could say anything to her and actually told her about his loss of parents and memory. They would pass notes in class. Sometimes Bunny would draw funny pictures and other times they would talk seriously. Darien would walk Bunny to the arcade with Andrew everyday. Andrew and Darien would watch her eat a triple chocolate sundae with whipped cream and extra sprinkles, her favorite, until her mom came to pick her up. Then he would walk back to the orphanage. They had become the best of friends and he realized he would miss her very much when he changed grades next year. The last day of school came. It was sad to see the two. They would still be at the same school next year but they knew it would not be the same. They wouldn't see each other in class or everyday at recess. Darien would also have to study hard at first to keep up so he wouldn't have much time to come to the arcade. They were silent that day. Neither wanted to be the one to say goodbye. Then Bunny's mom came in to take her home. He stood and gave her a fierce hug. Bunny was surprised by his actions, but hugged back nonetheless.  
  
"Come on, Bunny. It's time to go home. You will see each other next year." At her mother's words, the dams broke loose. Bunny's eyes welled up instantly.  
  
"But it won't be the same! I'm going to miss you, Darien!" And she launched herself back into his arms. He pulled her back to look at her. He smiled his quirky grin and wiped at her tears.  
  
"Don't worry, Bunny. I will see you again." Then he place a light kiss on her cheek. She gave a little sniff and smile crookedly. She knew it was true. Knew that no matter what happened, they would see each other again. As she walked away, holding her mothers hand, Darien let a single tear fall down his face.  
  
He was right that they would see each other again. But it would be much later. The next year Darien spent most of his time studying to get into an elite school the next year. He made it for sixth grade and continued his studies there. They never even ran into each other at the arcade until High school. By that time, Darien had become good friends with Andrew, with whom he was now in the same grade, and spent most of his time in at the counter studying and talking with Andrew. But they had both changed so much, neither had known it.  
  
So, tell me what you think.  
Ree-B 


	2. Part II

The fate of a kiss (Updated 21-Oct-04 22:51:17)  
By: Ree-B Rating: PG-13 (just one curse word)  
  
Part II the high school scene: BFF (maybe not)  
  
Disclaimer- I don't own Sailormoon, don't sue me and take away my one piece of lint in my pocket.  
  
On to the story- this part is mostly in Darien's POV w/ a few Serena parts.  
  
Here I am. At the same arcade I go to every day after school. At the same stool I sit at every day. At the same counter where I usually talk to Andy as he works. Staring at the same girl. What girl you ask? Well, I'm embarrassed to say, but my best friend, Serena Tsukino. She's over there, in that booth, talking to some guy. She's laughing, he's made a joke and she's laughing. She looks so pretty when she laughssigh...Oh, sorry. Earth to Darien, wake up fool. I've actually liked Bunny for a long time. I just don't have the guts to tell her. Besides she wouldn't want to date me. She thinks of me more like a best friend, possibly a protective brother figure, but nothing close to what I would hope for. (He turns his attention back to Serena) Look at her. How can someone not fall to the ground and kiss the feet of the beautiful goddess. Even that guy has fallen into her magical spell. WAIT! When did his arm slip around her waist! ERRRRR! I'm going to bash that guys head in! Calm down Darien, you can't do that. She can date whom she likes. You aren't her boyfriend. Why can't I tell her? When did we become best friends, you ask? Well after I saw her two years ago, we just kind of hit it off. What, I didn't tell you about that! Oh, well that explains the confusion. One second you read about me leaving the 1st grade and the next I'm talking about being best buds. Well let me catch you up. I'm a senior this year and Bunny's a sophomore, but we are the same age. After I changed grades I didn't see her until two years ago, when I was walking right out there on the sidewalk...  
  
FLASHBACK  
  
...this girl was walking in front of me. I looked her up and down. Long legs, skinny waist, long blonde hair that reached almost to the ground (although it was oddly pulled into two buns on the top of her head). Right from the start she seemed oddly familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on it. She mumbled something about school and being grounded for the rest of her life. Then, out of nowhere, she hurled a crinkled up paper behind her, not realizing it was on a crash course for my head. Luckily, my fine-tuned reflexes that came from a year or so of being Tux, saved the day as I caught the paper, a hair's breadth from my nose.  
  
"Watch it, Litter-bug!" I said as I un-crumpled the paper. I held the paper in front of my face, trying to locate the name on the paper. I first noticed the sketches of Tuxedo Mask with hearts, big boost of ego on my part. This girl already had a crush on me, she just didn't know it. One point for the Dare-man!! I then found the name. Serena Tsukino. Where have I seen that name before? I pulled the paper down from in front of my face just in time for the girl to turn to face me. I looked into her lovely sky blue eyes and immediately knew who it was.  
  
"Bunny?" She didn't know who I was. That's to be expected since we both had changed a whole lot since I saw her last. At least I saw her name to bring back the memory. Then as I smiled that half smile of mine, her faced changed from contemplation to recognition.  
  
"DARIEN!" she yelped as she threw herself into my arms. I graciously caught and held her until she placed her hands on my chest and courteously pushed herself out of the embrace.  
  
"I haven't seen you in forever! ...I missed you." Her voice got softer at the last comment. I had an urge to reach out and comfort her but brushed it aside, thinking I shouldn't.  
  
"I've missed you, too, Bunny. Well how have you been? You're in 8th grade now, right?"  
  
"Ya! How did you know?"  
  
"That's the grade I should be in, remember?"  
  
"Oh, right! Well that means..." she thought for a second, "...You're in 10th grade!"  
  
"Yep! Hey Bunny I was headed to the arcade. If you want to join me, I'll buy you a milkshake and maybe help you with studying for a make up test. I'm sorry, but this is a pretty bad grade!" I said with a chuckle. She sneered and laced her hand around my elbow as she grabbed her paper.  
  
"It's not fair for you to say that, Mr. Smarty-pants." We then walked to the arcade.  
  
END OF FLASHBACK  
  
...And the rest was history. That sound really corny but it is. We've been best friends ever since and now, 2 years later, I have discovered my feeling for her and must live in pain through every new boyfriend without the courage to tell her. But that's not the only thing I haven't told her. She doesn't know I'm Tuxedo Mask. I don't know why I don't just tell her, considering that it would make telling her the rest ten times easier since she daydreams of him constantly (and I've heard her call his name in her sleep). But then again it could be too much for her at one time. Oh, I don't know what to do.  
  
(Now author's POV)  
  
"BEEP BEEP BEEP" Darien was interrupted from his inner thoughts by a soft beeping coming from Bunny's purse.  
  
"Oh, my...a...beeper. I'll call them, be right back." She said to her male companion, as she quickly slipped around the corner towards the ladies room. A few seconds passed then she came speeding out.  
  
"Mina!" Darien hadn't noticed Mina was there before (he was probably to enraptured by Serena) Mina quickly jumped from her seat in a booth in the back.  
  
"We need to go NOW!" Mina knew exactly what she was talking about and followed Bunny to the door. As Bunny passed Darien, he grabbed her by the waist and turned her to face him. He had a worried look in his face.  
  
"What's wrong? Where are you going in such a hurry?" "I...we...park...I'll tell you later." She stammered. Then she proceeded to exit the arcade with Mina in tow at 100mph. 'She was distant again. That's the 3rd time this week. First she had backed out of going to the movies Monday night because 'it was a family emergency' but he had called later to make sure everything was okay and her mom didn't know what he was talking about, said that she wasn't home yet. Then on Thursday, we went for a swim and I asked her how she got this HUGE bruise on her back and she said that it was from one of her extra-violent klutz outs, but that size of a bruise is highly unlikely and I could tell she was lying. And now this! What is going on with her?!?' Darien was intent on finding out. He sprinted out the door, about to follow her, but she was nowhere in sight. Just then he felt that familiar feeling down in the pit of his stomach that told him that Sailormoon was in danger. She was probably the reason that kept him from telling Bunny his feelings, because then he would have to rule out a relationship with Sailormoon. He quickly found a place to transform and headed to where his gut told him he would find her. To the park. 'Didn't Bunny say something about the park. I hope she doesn't get caught in trouble if there's a fight.'  
  
As he arrived at the park he leapt into a tree to take in the scene. It didn't look good. Sailormoon was held on either side by two youmas, one had a hold of the neck of her sailor flap, the other was holding onto the bow on the front of her outfit. The four other scouts all sat cringing in pain on the ground. He could tell Sailormoon was running out of strength. With her last strand of effort, she dusted the two creatures. As they fell into oblivion, they ripped her outfit apart, tearing her brooch from her and tossing it into a nearby bush. Tux dropped to the ground and slowly paced towards her. In front of him was the detransformed version of Sailormoon, Bunny. His surprise faded when he noticed she had fainted from exhaustion. He had to get her to safety before the press arrived. He grabbed her brooch from the soft turf and gently picked her up in his arms and carried her off to his apartment. As soon as they were gone the four scouts came to consciousness. Raye was the first to join the world of the living.  
  
"...Uhh...Sailormoon?...huh, where is she? BUNNY!?!" she frantically searched the area.  
  
"What happened to her?" asked Lita.  
  
"I don't know. The last thing I remember was her being grabbed by the two youmas."  
  
"What if she'sgulp dead?" said Mina, joining the conversation. They all looked at her with that 'What-if-you-are-right' look.  
  
"Not to worry, guys, we can call her on her communicator." Said Amy, ever the voice of reason.  
  
"Great idea!" Mina flipped open her compact, in Bunny? Where are you?"  
  
Darien heard a beeping and pulled out what bunny had called her beeper earlier. He opened it to reveal the face of Sailor Venus on the screen of some kind of in Bunny? Where are you?" was what she said. He thought he should answer her.  
  
"It's okay, Venus. She'll be safe with me." He then closed it and replaced it in her pocket as he reached his balcony.  
  
"He said it's okay and that she would be okay with him." Said Mina.  
  
"Duh! Stupid, what if he finds out who she really is?" briefed Raye.  
  
"Well, he probably already knows, considering that you called her Bunny." Informed Amy, again being the epitome of wisdom.  
  
"Oops!" Mina said sheepishly. "But how do we find her?" They all looked to Amy.  
  
"You are in luck, guys, I'm one step ahead of you. I already have her on my scanner."  
  
"Well tell us where she is." Insisted Lita.  
  
"Um, well the results are rather, how do I say it, disturbing!"  
  
"Oh, come on Ames, it cant be that bad." Raye said as she snatched Amy's computer and looked at the screen.  
  
"HOLY SHIT!!!! That's Darien's Apartment!!!!"  
  
Bunny began to wake up. She felt warm. She snuggled into the blankets of Darien's bed. 'Wait, since when have I been in a bed?' She opened her eyes. This wasn't her bed. It wasn't her room. It was Darien's. How did she get here, the last thing she remembered was fainting in the park. She sat up, wracking her brain as to how she got where she was.  
  
"Good morning, Sunshine."  
  
She turned to the strong silhouette of Darien. He came and sat down on the bed next to her. He brushed a strand of hair from her face. She loved it so much when he did that. It was when he did that that she got glimmers of hope that he might like her more than a friend. She nodded her head. She then turned her attention to her torn shirt. The bow was almost ripped completely off and the brooch ...HER BROOCH. Her faced turned to shock as she placed her hands at the spot where her brooch had formerly rested. Darien noticed that she was worried because of the loss of her brooch. He stood and reached into his pocket.  
  
"Oh ya, I almost forgot." He took out the brooch and sat back down, examining the object in his hands. " It's funny that such a small object can change you into such a powerful person."  
  
She strained to scream 'how did you find out' but found her voice non-  
existent at the moment. Darien read her face like a book.  
  
"You probably want to know what happened, right? Well, I saw the fight and you detransform. You fainted and I figured I should get you away before other people arrived. So I brought you here."  
  
"But why were you there?" She said, finding her voice. She looked up to study his face, placing a hand on either side of his face. As her hands touched his bare skin, he shuddered, luckily unnoticed by Bunny. She stared into his eyes, he felt like she could tell all his secrets when she looked at him like that. She could only see one.  
  
"Are you Tuxedo Mask?" He made a red rose in his hand and gave it to her.  
  
"At your service, Milady."  
  
A long silence was broken by a loud knock on the door. Darien reluctantly got up to get the door. He reached the door just as another set of knocks rang through the apartment. Darien opened the door to reveal four girls, Raye in the lead with her hands upon her hips.  
  
"Ah! Look who it is. Let me see. Mercury is Amy, the genius. Jupiter is Lita, Fierce like a storm. Venus is Mina, ever the matchmaker. And miss. I-could-fight-with-a-tree here is Mars."  
  
"Good job, Sherlock," Raye said as she pushed her way inside, "Now where is she?"  
  
"I'm in here Raye. Calm down." Bunny appeared at the doorway of Darien's bedroom. She grabbed her brooch that was still in Darien's hand and headed out the door. As she left she turned to him and said a single word,  
  
"Later."  
  
That single word meant the storm was coming. All would be asked and answered. It scared him. Maybe he would have a chance to finally tell her his feelings. Mina lingered in the doorway, staring at him through squinted eyes.  
  
"I don't see it." She said. She brightened, "wait, WAIT...." Then it failed, "Nope. Definitely don't see it." Then she walked away, joining her friends who had already avidly started to ask Bunny questions. He watched as they ushered her to the elevator. As they stepped in she looked right into his eyes and mouthed the same word: Later.  
  
It had been a week. Darien knew that Bunny was avoiding him. She even had her mom making excuses for her. By now he was ready to explode, he had to talk to her. He was walking down the hall and he saw her. He couldn't miss the sight of two buns in a crowd. He came up right next to her.  
  
"Why are you avoiding me? We need to talk about what happened." She ignored him.  
  
"Bunny, listen to me!"  
  
"Later" she whispered without looking at him.  
  
"No, Bunny. Now!" He spinned her and backed her up to the lockers. He placed one hand on the lockers near her neck and the other on her arm, trapping her in. He leaned in.  
  
"You can't keep saying later. It's no good anymore. We need to let out the feelings we have inside for our 'counterparts' that we both know are there." She started to walk away but he just held his grip on her arm even tighter.  
  
"Let me go, Darien!" She strained against his grip.  
  
"How strong do you think I really am?" She looked at him with a crooked smile, grabbed his hand that was holding her, and said,  
  
"How strong do you think I really am!?" She squeezed her hand around his. Before long he grunted in pain and released her. She started to walk off but he yelled after her,  
  
"I've been accepted at Oxford, Bunny." She stopped. "I have to leave for England right after finals next week." She tried to hold back her tears that were ready to course down her cheeks. He was going to leave her. How could he? She decided she should be mad at him and kept walking. The second she placed one foot in front of the other, she regretted it but knew she couldn't turn back.  
  
" Bunny?" his calls echoed in her ears.  
aaaaaaaaaa1aaaaaaaaa2aaaaaaaaa3aaaaaaaaa4aaaaaaaaa5aaaaaaaaa6aaaaaaaaa7 When she got home that day, she couldn't stop the tears from flowing. They flowed through dinner. They flowed through desert. They flowed through the night until she eventually cried herself to sleep.  
  
"Now boarding for flight 1023 to London"  
  
The death toll rang. His life as he knew it would end when he got on that plane. He had told her when he was leaving: departure time, flight number, he even gave her directions to the airport. He had hoped she would come. At least to see him off. But she wasn't there. He turned to board the plane.  
  
"Darien, WAIT!"  
  
She had come! He turned on a dime in time to have Bunny fill his arms. He hadn't hugged her in two weeks. He smelled her hair and ran his fingers through the silky strands that smelled of vanilla.  
  
"Boarding call for flight 1023 to London."  
  
He reluctantly pulled himself from her embrace.  
  
"Darien, please don't go."  
  
"You know I have to, Bunny." He wanted to tell her. NEEDED to tell her. But the words wouldn't come to his throat. He knew only one way to let her know....  
  
He placed his hand under her chin, lifting it ever so slightly, as he wrapped his arm around the small of her back. Pulling her close, he pressed his lips to hers. It was tender. Romantic. Bunny closed her eyes in sweet tranquility. That was not the effect he wanted. He wanted his love for her to ravage her like a storm and leave her wanting more but the winds had already died down. He pressed his tongue to her lips eager to taste her mouth. Her heart led her to let him, even though her mind was screaming for her not to. The kiss quickly escalated from sweet to passionate. She had never been kissed like this before. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer to him. Just then he started to pull away. She wanted to say 'No' but the word never came. She just stood there and watched him board the plane. His last call to her would never leave her memory.  
  
"Bye, Buns." When did he start calling her that? She didn't know but she liked the new name. But he would never call her that again.  
  
Well there it is. I'm evil aren't I? When will they get together and how? I'm not telling. You'll just have to read the next part.  
  
ree-b 


End file.
